# I'm in the market for a new PC, what should I get? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 3, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199 "2010-03-03T23:17:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/1 "2010-03-03T23:17:19Z")
Here’s what I need it to do. Basic internet surfing, web browsing, e-mail. Online movie watching. Music storage for Itunes (about 7,000 songs) Picture storage (about 5,000 standard pictures) No gaming The occasional word/excel/adobe pdf document read/write. At this moment it would be able to connect to my DSL via ethernet, but having Wifi capability for future use might be handy. A desktop is okay, I don’t necessarily need it to be portable, unless a laptop is more economical. So how big of a processor/hard drive/ram memory do I need? And which manufacturer has the best deal for the quality of product? ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/2 "2010-03-03T23:22:18Z")
Those are pretty tame requirements. A netbook probably wouldn’t work for the online movie viewing (especially if the movies are HD), but practically any computer above that would be fine. Mac or PC, pretty much any model. At least 2GB of RAM, but 4 is “low end” these days anyway. Any hard drive you can actually buy should be fine, get a 500GB one if you want lots of breathing room. Go look at the Dell, HP, or Apple deals and pick the one that makes you happiest. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/3 "2010-03-03T23:38:02Z")
[Make sure not to be a sucker or the store will have to throw you out!](http://download.lardlad.com/sounds/season12/computer1.mp3) ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/4 "2010-03-04T00:00:50Z")
We had the same requirements, and got [this one](http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Compaq+-+Presario+Desktop+with+AMD+Athlon%26%23153%3B+II+Dual-Core+Processor/9693859.p?id=1218152062935&skuId=9693859) a couple of days ago. LOVING it so far. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2010, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/5 "2010-03-04T00:03:26Z")
I agree your needs are basic. You can get external hard drives on the cheap. You can get an external 2TB drive for $135.00 (got that from Dell last Novemeber). If you get a laptop it’s not as expandable as a desktop so if you go with that you want to make sure you get the most to start with. For a laptop I would get at least 4g of RAM on a 64bit system. I would get a wireless card and a DTV/Cable tuner (spend no more than $50.00 bucks 'cause you can pick up a USB tuner for that) Look for things like USB slots and I would see if you could find a system with a eSATA drive. I’d pay for one, if you’re gonna hook up an external drive an eSATA port will ZOOM the transfer rate much quicker than a USB port. 500gb hard drive is a good amount but if you are going to go with an external drive you can easily get by with 325gb drive. If you get a laptop make sure you try it out first. If you order online fine, but find a store with a similar (or exact) laptop and see if the keys “feel” correct for you. I hate the fact that my laptop doesn’t have a number pad on it. Next laptop I get will have one. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/6 "2010-04-01T20:52:05Z")
I finally ordered this set-up: AMD Athelon processor (1 GHz 1MB) 3 GB SDRAM @ 800 HZ 320 GB ATA HD (7200 RPM) Upgraded ATI HD 512 MB graphics card 802.11 b/g wireless card 8x DVD+/-RW drive Windows 7 OS 64 bit Integrated 2.1 HD audio HDMI output 4 USB slots Got it all for $380.00 including shipping. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/7 "2010-04-01T21:19:48Z")
> [@Wilbo523](#): > > I finally ordered this set-up: > > AMD Athelon processor (1 GHz 1MB) > 3 GB SDRAM @ 800 HZ > 320 GB ATA HD (7200 RPM) > Upgraded ATI HD 512 MB graphics card > 802.11 b/g wireless card > 8x DVD+/-RW drive > Windows 7 OS 64 bit > Integrated 2.1 HD audio > HDMI output > 4 USB slots > > Got it all for $380.00 including shipping. A laptop I assume? ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/8 "2010-04-01T21:24:44Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > A laptop I assume? No, a mini desktop. Dell’s Zino HD. Component wise, pretty much a laptop in a 8"x8"x3" box. Don’t need a monitor, have a 20" flat screen. ---
**Author:** ![smee\_goan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f07891/32.png) [@smee\_goan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smee_goan)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/9 "2010-04-01T22:00:44Z")
Dual core Dell desktop here, $360.00 I recall. About six months now. Boots up fast, ebay guy below dealmakingman ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-in-the-market-for-a-new-pc-what-should-i-get/531199/10 "2010-04-03T00:01:58Z")
If you also need it to work right, get a Mac. Otherwise, a PC is fine.